Türkiye and Kazakhstan take another step toward reaching their USD 10 billion bilateral trade target

A “General Trade Delegation” program to Kazakhstan — a country where Turkish TV series enjoy strong popularity and holidays in Türkiye are in high demand — was organized under the coordination of the Ministry of Trade of the Republic of Türkiye, in cooperation with the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TİM) and the Aegean Exporters’ Associations (EİB), within the framework of the Ministry's Far Countries Strategy.

The delegation visit, held in Almaty on 20–23 October 2025 to promote Turkish export products, was led by Yalçın Ertan, Vice Coordinator Chair of Aegean Exporters’ Associations and Chairman of the Aegean Ferrous and Non-Ferrous Metals Exporters' Association.

Turkish and Kazakh businesspeople held more than 200 bilateral meetings

Ertan stated that the Kazakhstan Trade Delegation included 18 exporting companies operating in sectors such as ferrous, steel and non-ferrous metals, food, olives and olive oil, machinery, mining, electrical-electronic and IT, chemicals, defense and logistics. On the Kazakh side, 153 importers participated, resulting in over 200 one-to-one business meetings.

Both sides eager to raise bilateral trade to $10 billion

The bilateral meetings at the InterContinental Hotel Almaty were attended by Türkiye’s Consul General in Almaty Tuğba Alan Özdenfedakar, Trade Counsellors Ekrem Alper Bozkurt and İlhan Polat. Ertan emphasized that senior representatives and businesspeople from organizations such as the Turkish-Kazakh Businesspeople Association (TUKİB), MÜSİAD and ATAMEKEN joined the meetings, paving the way for new commercial ties. Ertan also met with Abbas Şahin, Chairman of TUKİB, discussing potential future cooperation and agreeing on organizing Buyer Delegations and Sectoral Trade Missions. He noted that China has significantly increased its commercial presence in Kazakhstan in recent years, making major infrastructure investments as Kazakhstan sits at the heart of the “Middle Corridor” route — a strategic pathway for Chinese goods to reach Europe quickly. Highlighting Kazakhstan’s wealth of underground resources — being the world’s largest uranium producer — and China’s growing demand for Kazakh uranium, Ertan stressed the urgency for Türkiye to strengthen its presence in the country. “To ensure our exports do not lose momentum in the face of rising Chinese influence, we must analyze Kazakhstan’s needs well and focus on products where we have competitive advantages,” he said, adding that both sides demonstrated strong willingness to raise bilateral trade to USD 10 billion.

Ertan noted that in recent years, Türkiye and Kazakhstan have established a strong foundation for cooperation in foreign trade. “In 2019, Türkiye accounted for 2.5% of Kazakhstan’s imports, and by the end of 2024 Türkiye’s share had risen to 5%, making Türkiye the third-largest supplier to Kazakhstan. On the export side, Türkiye’s share in Kazakhstan’s exports increased from 2.7% in 2019 to 4% by the end of 2024, positioning Türkiye as the sixth-largest destination for Kazakh exports. We organized a highly productive trade mission to Kazakhstan to further strengthen the win-win commercial relations between the two countries,” he concluded.

During his visit to Kazakhstan, Yalçın Erkan, Vice Coordinator Chair of the Aegean Exporters’ Associations, also toured the Powerexpo Almaty 2025 (Kazakhstan International Energy, Electrical Equipment and Machine Building Exhibition), which took place at the same time. He visited the stands of Turkish companies participating in the fair and held discussions regarding the Kazakh market.

EİB’s exports to Kazakhstan increased by 40%

The Aegean Exporters’ Associations increased their exports to Kazakhstan by 40% in the January–September 2025 period, rising from USD 51.3 million to USD 71.8 million.